Local production of US F 16 & F/A 18 not attractive: HAL Chairman Suvarna Raju

In an interview with ET, Raju reveals that the government has cleared the new Light Combat Helicopter for export and talks are on with at least two nations.

The man leading India’s top military aviation company feels that the US offer to produce F 16 and F/A 18 jets in India is not attractive, as both jets failed to meet the cut at an air force competition for new fighters. The chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Suvarna Raju, says that any gaps in the fighter force can be met by shoring up production of Indian developed Light Combat Aircraft, to which the private sector can contribute 80% of parts. In an interview with ET, Raju also reveals that the government has cleared the new Light Combat Helicopter for export and talks are on with at least two nations. Excerpts:

Do you think the recent US offer for the production of F 16 and F/A 18 fighters in India are viable? Neither aircraft could win the (air force’s) medium multirole combat aircraft (MMRCA) competition. So I really don’t know. It is not very attractive and I sincerely don’t know how serious they are. The F 16 production has stopped and I am sure a parallel line for the F/A 18 won’t be worth it. There are reports that the fighters are being considered as we may have a gap of 200 aircraft of the LCA class by 2021. If this is true, the gap can be filled up by increasing production rate of LCA. In the new defence procurement policy, an Indian designed and manufactured system has top priority which the LCA fits into and the others don’t.

How involved will the private sector be in the production of the LCA aircraft in India? The first 20 aircraft will be completed by 2018, by when we have to make a Mk 1A version of the aircraft. We are ramping up production to 16 aircraft a year. We have recently issued request for quotations to the private players to supply modules like fuselage parts and wings. If we can get this from the private sector, we can increase production to 25 aircraft a year. So, we are looking for capacity augmentation with these private players. We are looking at a concept in which HAL is an integrator that has some 20% (of total) work in the hangers. The remaining 80% of work can be off loaded to the industry. If a private company for example is setting up a shop for composites manufacturing, it will be assured for business for many years.

Has there been progress on the Light Combat Helicopter? As a platform, the LCH has passed all requirements. It is now a viable platform and depending on the weapons requirement by the Army, the Air Force or another country, we will integrate them. Two countries have expressed keenness in the product and we would approach them shortly. We have got clearance from the government to export the choppers a few months ago.

What about reports of a possible IPO for HAL? I don’t know where the reports have come from, as only this year we have done a share buyback from the government and Rs 6,000 crore (including tax) has been received by the government. In my opinion, there would no IPO in the coming days, it could of course happen at a later stage.

What is the progress in setting up a new helicopter facility for engines? We are looking at a joint venture company to be formed with Turbomeca and are trying to locate a place to build a facility in Goa. This will be for work on the Shakti and 2B2 engines. We are looking to close this in not more than 60 days by choosing a place that suits us.